An animal advocate for years, Cropp over the past several months has helped found and develop the website Helping Alabama Pets, a one-stop address on the Internet designed to do just that.

"Helping Alabama Pets was created to help people," Cropp says. "It's not for rescues or vets. It's created to help people (pet owners and advocates) know what to do."

There's a corresponding Facebook page as well. The whole intent, though, is to give pet owners and others interested in helping animals the resources they need when they need them.

The website is divided into sections with a range of information about low-cost spay/neuter programs, a comprehensive FAQ section on a range of topics and a locator by county of the state's animal shelters. There's also links to state and local animals laws, information on obtaining emergency care for pets, and suggestions for ways to volunteer as an advocate.

Cropp has been an animal advocate since 2007, she says, but became a vegetarian in 1991, when she was given a pot-bellied pig as a gift. Hamlet, who grew to be about 125-150 pounds, lived with Cropp for a dozen years before crossing the Rainbow Bridge. Cropp remains a vegetarian. She has previously worked with Alabama Spay/Neuter Clinic and the Friends of Cats and Dogs Foundation. She's also a member of the Animal League of Birmingham and serves as the Alabama representative for the Companion Animal Advisory Council.

But right now, she's focusing much of her free time and effort on Helping Alabama Pets.

And it's not just about cats and dogs.

"Any Alabama pet," Cropp says. "You name it, and we'll figure out how we can help."

That help may include temporary aid with pet food or lower cost veterinarian services or how to find a reputable groomer, kennel or rescue.

Cropp says some folks dump their pets far away from home when they can't afford to care for them any longer.

"That's why we have this website," says Cropp. "Before you dump an animal, contact us and see if we can help you."

People may be surprised at the number of resources Cropp and her colleagues can point them toward.

One of Cropp's goals is to get more veterinarians on board with the spay/neuter certificate program. Her point: Many people are not going to pay $200 or $300 to have their pets fixed, so they end up with a litter of puppies who wind up at a rescue or shelter. But a veterinarian who participates in the certificate program will do a lower cost spay/neuter -- and then may very well have a regular client for annual vaccinations and other care from that day on.

"Some of the best clinics send people to me all the time (for certificates)," Cropp says.

Cropp supports the no-kill movement, and believes a no-kill culture in Alabama is possible -- one day.

"Euthanasia is a necessary evil," Cropp says. "Unless people spay and neuter, it's always going to be around."

And as sad as it may be to put down a healthy, adoptable dog or cat, it's worse to dump one on the street, hoping somebody else will shoulder the burden or, more likely, forcing the animal to scavenge for its very survival. That is almost always a slow death sentence.

Before abandoning a pet, for whatever reason, check out Helping Alabama Pets. There's always a better alternative than taking a pet to an unfamiliar neighborhood and letting it out.

And have your pet fixed, if it isn't already.

Joey Kennedy,
a Pulitzer Prize-winner, is a community engagement specialist for Alabama Media
Group, AL.com and The Birmingham News. Reach him at jkennedy@al.com.

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